Forepart-turning machine.



A. EPPLER.

FOREPART TURNING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 1An.27, 191s.

LQTLQGM. Patented Dec. 26,1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

A. EPPL ER.

FOREPART TURNING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.27.1916.

l 1 0,054; Patented Dec. 26, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2- M lizaemi; I

A, EPPLER.

FOREPART TURNING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.2T. I916.

1 2 l 0., 0&4 Patented Dec. 26, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3- ITED STATES PATENT @FFIQE.

ANDREW EPPLER, OE LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERYCOMPANY, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

FOREPART-TURNING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 26,1916.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW EPPLER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Forepart-TurningMachines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, andexact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The present invention relates to shoe turning machines and moreparticularly to machines for turning the forepart of a shoe.

Certain classes of turn shoes are provided with a stifiener member toform a box toe and considerable difficulty is experienced in turningthese shoes owing to the tendency of the stiffener member to crumple orwrinkle during the turning operation, marring the appearance of thefinished shoe.

The. object of the present invention is to provide certain improvementsin a forepart turning machine which enable shoes pro vided with box toesto be turned with facility and without wrinkling the stiffener memberand displacing it relative to the upper. With this object in view afeature of the invention contemplates the provision in a machineprovided with a shoe supporting form and a cooperating turning iron of amember which engages with the toe portion of the upper during theturning operation to retain the stiffening member in place and preventthe latter from wrinkling.

Still further features of the invention consist in certain novelfeatures of construction, combinations and arrangements of priorto theturning operation; Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 illustrating theturning iron and upper engaging member in their advanced positions priorto the turning operation; Fig. 5 is a detail illustrating the relativepositions of the turning iron and upper engaging member during theturning operation; and Fig. 6 is a cross section upon the line 66 ofFig. 3 looking in the direction of the arrows.

The illustrated embodiment of the invention is preferably shown inconnection with a machine of the type shown and described in the patentto Eppler, No. 706,038, August 5, 1902. This machine comprises the usualsupporting base '1 having a vertig ally adjustable bracket 3 whichcarries a rotatable turret 4 havinga series of radially projecting shoeforms 5. The supporting base 1 also carries a turning iron 7 which ismounted upon an arm 8 secured to a supporting shaft 9 rotated inbearings formed in a head 10 to move the turning iron into and out ofoperative relation to a cooperating shoe supporting form. The turningiron is retained in operative position by a pair of cooperating toothedcollars 12 and 13 secured respectively to the shaft 9 and head 10 andnormally retained, in engagement by a spring 1 1. The toe of the shoe isclamped against the supporting form in the usual manner by the turningiron 7 and during the turning operation the sole of the shoe issupported by anauxiliary turning iron 15 pivotally supported upon acarrier 16 slidingly mounted upon the turning iron 7 and arranged to beadvanced into operative engagement with the shoe sole by a treadle 18which is connected with the carrier through a bell crank 19 having itsopposite arms connected respectively with the treadle through a link 20and with the carrier through a link 21. The auxiliary turning iron isguided during the in and out movements by a face 25 formed on the turning iron 7 and engaged by the rear end of the auxiliary iron 15 which ispivoted upon the iron 7 at 24. The auxiliary turning iron is normallyretained in a retracted position, as shown in Fig. 1, by a spring 26connecting the treadle with the supporting base 1. In operating themachine the shoe to be turned is first placed overa suitable skeletonsupporting form 5 and the shaft 9 is then rotated to .swing the turningiron 7 into the position shown in Fig. 3 to clamp the toe of the shoefirmly against the form. The auxiliary turning iron 15 is then advancedinto engagement with the under side of the sole at approximately theball line to support and form a preliminary break in the sole. Theoperator by then engaging the heel which has been previously turned isenabled toturn the forepart of the shoe from the ball toward the toe,gradually stripping the shoe from the supporting form 5. During thisturning operation the treadle is conveniently 'manipulated to permit agradual retracting movement of the auxiliary turning iron I the shoe tobe permanently disfigured.

According to the present invention the'toe portion of the uppercontaining the stiffening member is stretched firmly over the supportingform and held during the turning operation, effectually preventing anypermanent wrinkling of the toe. This is conveni iently accomplished byproviding an upper engaging member which engages with and stretches theupper over the support during the turning operation. As the turningoperation progresses toward the toe the upper engaging member 1syieldlngly retracted,

the toe portion of the upper in the meantime turning about the tip ofthe upper I engaging member which is in contact with v the upper. In thesimplest and most efficient vanced withthe auxiliary iron into contactwith the toe portion of the upper, after form of the invention which hasyet been devised the upper engaging member is embodied in the type ofmachine above described and is yieldingly connected with the auxiliaryturning iron. lVith this construction the upper engaging member is ad- Iwhich the member is retained in yielding engagement with the upperduring the con- 6 tinned advancing movement of the auxiliary turningiron. In the machine shown in the drawings an upper engaging member isin-.

.- di cated at 30 and is secured at its rear end a. head 32 slidinglysupported upon the carrier '16; The head 32 is yieldingly connected withthe carrier 16 by a tension spring 33 and the normal position of thehead with relation to the carrier is determined by the engagement of a"shoulder 34: formed upon the carrier with the forward end of the head32. In the normal position ofthe head the upper engaging member 80 ispositioned as shown in Fig. 3 with relation to the auxiliary turningiron. As the auxiliary turning iron is advanced prior to the turning ofthe shoe the upper engaging member is also carried forward, wiping thetoe portion of the upper over the supporting form 5. This advancingmovement of the upper engaging member continues until a stop collar 35engages with the face ofv a bushing 37 threaded in theend of' a recess36 formed in the arm 8. The stop collar. is i formed upon one end of arod 38 threadedly connected at its opposite end with thehead 32 andprovided with a lock nut 39 to lock the rod in any adjusted positionwith relation to thehead. WVith thisconstruction'the advanced positionof the upper engaging member may be properly determined to retain themember in engagement with-the toe portion of the upper andto permit acontinued advancing movement of the auxiliary turning iron into theposition shown approximately in Fig. 4. V

In the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawingsthe upper engaging member conveniently com-- prises an arm constructedand arranged to engage with the upper of the shoe at approximately thetip of the toe-and rideup over the toe, wiping the toe portionof theupper across the inclined face A0 of'the supportingform. The arm issufficiently flexible to permit a spreading movement of the upperengaging member with'rela'tio'nto the turning iron, effectuallysmoothing out the; toe portion of the upper over the form. During theturning operation proper, the auxiliary turning arm is retractedfollowing thegra dual turning of the shoe toward the toe, the upperengaging member meanwhile remaining substantially in the position shownin" Fig. a through the action of" the spring 33. IVhen the auxiliaryturning iron is retracted to a position substantially opposite the upperengaging member the shoulder 34:

contacts with the head 32 causing a; rearward movement of the upperengaging'member with the auxiliary turning iron to,-permit the turningof the'toe portion of the upper.v As the turning operation progressestoward the tip of the toe the upper engag ing member is graduallyretracted with the auxiliary turning iron retaining the upper inposition on the shoesupporting form.

While it is preferred to employ the specific construction andarrangement of part's'" shown and described, it will be understood thatthis construction and arrangement? is not essential except so far asspecified in the claims, and may be changed or modified withoutdeparting from the broader features of the invention.

The invention having been described, what is claimed is 1. A shoeturning machine, having in combination, a shoe supporting form, aturning iron cooperating with the form and engaging with the toe portionof the shoe during the turning operation, and a member engaging with theoutside of the toe portion of the upper and arranged to maintain the upper stretched over the form during the turning operation.

2. A shoe turning machine, having in combination, a shoe supportingform, a turning iron cooperating with the form, an'upper engagingmember, and means for moving the upper engaging member into contact withthe toe portion of the upper above the form.

3. A shoe turning machine, having in combination, a shoe supportingform, a turning iron cooperating with the form, an auxiliary turningiron, an upper engaging member connected with the auxiliary turningiron, and means for moving the auxiliary turning iron and upper engagingmember into contact with the shoe on opposite sides of the form.

4:. A shoe turning machine, having in combination, a shoe supportingform, a turning iron cooperating with the form, an auxiliary turningiron, an upper engaging member, yielding connections between theauxiliary turning iron and upper engaging member, and means foradvancing the auxiliary turning iron and upper engaging member intocontact with a shoe.

5. A shoe turning machine, having in combination, a shoe supportingform, a turning iron cooperating with the form, a carrier slidinglysupported upon the iron, an auxiliary turning iron mounted upon thecarrier, an upper engaging member supported upon the carrier, yieldingconnections between the carrier and upper engaging member, means forlimiting the advancing movement of the upper engaging member, and meansfor advancing the carrier.

6. A shoe turning machine, having in combination, a shoe supportingform, a cooperating turning iron, an upper engaging member, andactuating means for causing the member to first engage with the tip ofthe toe and wipe the toe portion of the upper over the shoe supportingform.

7. A shoe turning machine, having in combination, a shOe supportingform, a cooperating turning iron, an auxiliary turning iron, an upperengaging member, connections between the auxiliary turning iron and theupper engaging member, and means for advancing the auxiliary turningiron and upper engaging member into engagement with the shoe uponopposite sides of the shoe supporting form.

ANDREW EPPLER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Iatente,

Washington, D. G.

